Bondage
by tim gueguen
Summary: A Downtown fanfiction Stuck on the night shift Alex gets some unexpected relief.


Bondage  
  
By tim gueguen  
  
Based on characters and situations from the MTV cartoon series Downtown. This story is intended for non-commercial entertainment purposes only, with no intent to violate commercial copyright for personal gain.  
  
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Alex Henson scowled as he stood behind the counter of Repro Man's. "At least this crappy night won't get any worse," he grumbled.   
  
The chime hanging on the front door rang. He looked up, and decided that maybe his night was going to get worse when he saw who had walked in.  
  
"Hey bro," called out his sister Chaka.  
  
"What the hell are you doing here Chaka?" he asked in annoyance.  
  
"Geez, nice to see you too Alex," she retorted. "What got up your ass and died?"  
  
Alex crossed his arms and glared at her. "The last thing I need tonight is you coming in here and being a pain in the ass."  
  
Chaka shot him an angry glare. "Well! So just because I walk in the door you figure I'm gonna be a pain in the ass? Geez, thanks a lot!"  
  
He looked at the blonde teen for a moment before his shoulders slumped. "Ah, pretty much anyone I know who showed up tonight would be a pain in the ass," he said wearily.  
  
"That bad huh?"  
  
Alex nodded. "I'm stuck here doing night shift all week, but things have been so damn slow I'm guessing I'll get my hours cut next week, and if business doesn't pick up soon I might get layed off altogether." He leaned heavily on the counter. "So, what are you doing here anyways? Something up with your friends?"  
  
Chaka sighed. "Mecca's gone out of town to see some relatives or something. Matt did a big tag on one of the music stores on 48th Street."  
  
"Oh, so that was one of Matt's," commented Alex. "I thought it looked familiar."  
  
"Yeah, but he decided somehow that the cops know he did it and are after him for it, so he's all paranoid and hiding out." She let out a snort of disgust. "And Fruity, I've got no clue where he is, but knowing him he's probably trying to get into the pants of some girl he has absolutely no chance with." She walked to the edge of the counter and sat down beside Alex. "Look, I don't wanna sit around home and listen to Mom complain, and I don't wanna go clubbing alone tonight, so I figured I could just hang around here for a bit."  
  
Alex looked at the hopeful expression on her face and sighed. "Alright, alright. You can hang around for a bit. But quietly."  
  
"Thanks Alex!" Chaka said gratefully and gave him a quick hug. Slipping off the counter she went to sit down at one of the computer terminals and started typing.  
  
Alex continued to lean on the counter, looking out the front window and watching the occasional late night pedestrian walk by. Eventually growing bored with just standing there he spent some time cleaning the glass on the photocopy machines.  
  
When Chaka said, "Geez, it really is slow here!" he looked at his watch. Much to his surprise 45 minutes had gone by since Chaka had shown up.  
  
"Wow, you've actually managed to keep your mouth in check for almost an hour!" he said, his amusement obvious.  
  
Chaka shrugged. "Hey, you said you wanted me to shut up, so I did." She swivelled her chair around to face him. "So, I told you where my homies are. So where are yours?"  
  
Alex walked back over to the counter to lean on it again. "They profiled the place Jen works at on some local cable show, so they've had a lot of customers lately and she's been getting a lot of hours. Haven't seen Goat in a while, but you know him. He's probably been drunk for 3 days straight, or hiding out from the 'Pig Men' again."  
  
Chaka laughed. "You know he's gonna end up in Bellevue one of these days if he keeps talking about that Pig Men stuff." A mischievious grin appeared on her face. "And what about your favourite goth girl lust object, Serena?"  
  
"She's been helping to organise that Goth Fest thing at the Gardens," he replied with a frown. "She gave me a pass, but I'm stuck here doing shit all. And she was just about the only major customer we've had this week."  
  
"God Alex, when are you gonna ask her out? I mean, like a proper date, and not something like that Halloween thing. Its pretty obvious she does like you, at least a little, so she'd probably say yes."  
  
Alex blushed slighty. "I'm, umm, waiting for the right moment."  
  
Chaka snorted. "Right. Which at the rate you're going will be when the two of you are in the same old folks home, all her other possible boyfriends are dead or senile, and she's in a wheel chair so she can't get away from you," she said sarcastically. "Seriously bro, if you hold out too long she's actually gonna hook up with a nice guy who treats her right, not like those losers she usually picks, and you'll miss the chance to be that nice guy."  
  
"Look, its just not the right time yet, okay?" he replied, his annoyance obvious.  
  
Chaka rolled her eyes. "Sure, what-ever Alex! Don't take my advice! You'll see."  
  
He turned away from her and pretended to check the labels on some copy paper so she wouldn't see the sad look on his face. The truth was he knew she was right, that if he kept on waiting Serena would end up with someone else. But he was too damn scared of being rejected, and so he did nothing.  
  
He turned back towards her when he heard her stand up. "Look, I'm gonna go, so I'll see you in a while, okay?"  
  
Alex nodded. "Yeah, sure, see you later," he said as she walked out the door. He walked over to the computers, pulled out one of the chairs, and sat down heavily, once again alone.  
  
He was greatly surprised when about 15 minutes later the door chime tinkled once again as Chaka shouldered her way back in. "Surprise! Betcha didn't expect to see me again tonight," she said cheerfully. In one hand she carried a large paper bag, a couple of Cokes in the other.  
  
"You got that right." He sniffed the air as a pleasant aroma drifted to him. "French fries?"  
  
"Yeah, from that new place a few blocks down," she replied with a nod. "I walked by on my way up here earlier, and it was like, God, they smelt soooooo good, I knew I just had to buy some. And since you're stuck here I figured I buy you some too."  
  
"Gee, thanks," he said as she put the bag and the Cokes on the counter. She tore open the bag and handed him a carton of french fries, along with a handful of ketchup packets and a plastic fork. "So, whats the occasion?" he asked her as he opened his carton.  
  
Chaka smiled. "I was gonna do something like this for you one of these days anyways, and tonight you really seemed like you needed it."  
  
"That's really nice of you," Alex said. Having covered the fries with several packets of ketchup he speared some with his fork, popping them in his mouth. "Hmmm, these are good," he said happily after he chewed his mouthful.  
  
"Toldja! Can I pick 'em or what?"  
  
The siblings ate in silence for several minutes, quietly enjoying their snack. Chaka finally broke the silence. "Soooo, I bet you're wondering why I did this."  
  
"The thought had crossed my mind," said Alex with a nod.  
  
Chaka looked down at her fries. "Look, when I came in here, you called me a pain in the ass. I'm not stupid big brother, I know I am a pain in the ass a lot of the time. Getting you mixed up in my messes, begging money off you, stuff like that." She looked back up at him, a sincere expression on her face. "Yet you keep on helping me. And I don't thank you enough. So, I wanted to do something to show I do appreciate what you do for me, even if its something as totally lame as buying you some food on a boring night."  
  
"Umm, thanks," Alex replied.  
  
"Hey, you deserve it. Besides," she said with a smirk, "its kind of a bribe for the next time I make a pest out of myself."  
  
"Which should be, oh, about a day or so from now," he teased.  
  
"Oh, you have such faith in me," she replied, her tone a mixture of amusement and sarcasm.  
  
"Well, you do have a problem staying out of trouble...."  
  
"Yeah, you're right," she replied, a sheepish grin on her face.  
  
Alex popped another forkful of fries into his mouth, following it down with a swig from his Coke. "So, what's the reason behind this sudden attack of sisterly guilt?"  
  
"Hmph, figures you'd figure I'd have more of a reason that just trying to be nice," Chaka grumbled good-naturedly. "Well, it's like this. They pulled a guy I went to school with out of the Hudson the other day."  
  
"Someone you knew well?" Alex asked.  
  
"No," replied Chaka, shaking her head. "I mean, I knew him enough to know his name and say hello, but he wasn't someone I was friends with or anything. Anyways, they dragged his car out of the Hudson the other day, with him in it, still belted in. And the cops don't know yet whether he offed himself, or if he drove in by accident."  
  
"Ooooh, creepy."  
  
"Yeah. Anyways, it got me thinking, what if I died all of a sudden? Not that I'm planning to, I wanna be around to get really, really old. Like 60 or something."   
  
"Of course," said Alex dryly. "You want to be around to keep bugging me for as long as possible."  
  
"Hell yeah! Especially since I'm younger than you, and girls live longer than guys," she replied, a wide grin on her face. "Anyways I figured, hey, you never know what could happen, so maybe I'd better be nicer to the people in my life. I wouldn't wanna buy it and have everyone thinking, 'God, I am so glad she's gone, she was such a pain in the ass!' Especially not you."  
  
Alex reached over and gave her a pat on the shoulder. "Don't worry kiddo. Even if you annoy the crap out of me sometimes I'd be really upset if something happened to you. I think even Jen would shed a tear if we lost you."  
  
Chaka laughed. "I dunno if she'd get upset even if you kicked off."  
  
"Nah, she would. She's not the misanthrope she pretends to be."  
  
"If you say so." Taking her fork she scooped up some more fries. "So, I guess you won't mind if I hang around here a while longer?" she asked.  
  
Alex shook his head. "Nope, this is one night where you can stay as long as you want." He took another sip of his Coke and smiled at her. "Thanks Chaka. I really needed this tonight."  
  
"Hey, that's what little sisters are for."  
  
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This may very well be the only Downtown fic currently on Fanfiction.net, and from what I can tell may be one of the only ones online period. The title is a play on the idea of sibling bonding and being stuck someplace you'd rather not be. 


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